Category Archives: VR vs.

The Simpsons has an eerie knack for predicting the future. Looking back over the history of America’s favourite family, it’s surprising to see just how many slapstick scenarios and seemingly goofy jokes have been turned into real life situations, gadgets and more. Take virtual reality (VR), for example. In the past fans have seen an aged Bart Simpson play virtual pool with hand-tracking and even watched children get to work in a ‘Yard Work Simulator’, mocking an entire genre of videogames that hadn’t even been conceived when it was first shown. But it’s the first time that the show referenced VR that fans likely remember the most. READ MORE

Imagine walking around a world class gym with a fitness instructor. He/she leads you to different areas to help you with press ups, sit ups, squats, jogging and more, giving you detailed instructions on how to best perform each exercise. After half an hour or so, you’ve had an exhausting workout and you’re proud of the work you’ve done. Then you pull off the head-mounted display (HMD) and throw up. READ MORE

2014 was a banner year for virtual reality (VR) technology with the release of the Oculus Rift head-mounted display’s (HMD) second development kit (DK2), Samsung’s Gear VR HMD and the reveal of the Project Morpheus HMD for PlayStation 4. The 2014 Game Developers Conference (GDC) in particular was an exciting time, though somewhat dulled by a grounded comment from videogame publishing giant, Ubisoft. The company stated that VR HMDs would have to sell upwards of one million units before the technology became viable for development. READ MORE

If you take a look back at any of VRFocus’ pre-event ‘VR vs.’ articles from the past year, you’ll likely note a sense of tempering expectations. It would be all too easy to get carried away every time an E3 or Gamescom rolls around and speculate on the reveal of highly anticipated information such as details on the consumer version of the Oculus Rift head-mounted display (HMD) or an update on Sony Computer Entertainment’s (SCE) Project Morpheus HMD. But such information was realistically – and evidently – out of reach in 2014. Now in 2015 solid news on the arrival of true consumer virtual reality (VR) seems closer than ever, and it might be time to pick those expectations up. That starts with the 2015 Game Developers Conference (GDC). READ MORE

The technology industry can be hard to keep up with. Anyone that’s followed the likes of Samsung, Google and more can attest to that. Take Gear VR, for example. In many countries Samsung’s smartphone-based virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display (HMD) is less than a month old. While the device debuted in the US in December 2014 it only started to roll out in other territories in late January 2015. Despite this, there’s already talk of a new version of the device that could be revealed in just a few weeks’ time. But should reports of this new device turn out to be true, then early adopters need not feel betrayed. READ MORE

It’s a line that’s been stated time and again by everyone from Palmer Luckey to those operating public display booths for the kit. The Oculus Rift virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display (HMD) isn’t meant for using while standing. The reasons for this are obvious; pulling a large plastic case over your eyes and not only obscuring vision but convincing you that you’re in another environment entirely has the potential to be extremely dangerous. If creator Oculus VR wasn’t to actively distance itself from encouraging users to stand with the Oculus Rift on, it could face a lot of legal issues. READ MORE

As Oculus VR’s Nate Mitchell puts it: “We’ve said from the beginning we’re big gamers, and we started Oculus to deliver consumer VR and revolutionize games. But it may well end up being that VR is more about film than games. We don’t know what the killer app is.” READ MORE

It’s rare for a company to catch both press and fans alike off-guard with a hardware announcement. The Project Morpheus virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display (HMD), for example, was all but confirmed by the time Sony Computer Entertainment’s reveal event rolled around. Microsoft, however, managed to surprise just about everyone last week as a media briefing originally thought to be revealing new features for its Windows 10 operating system (OS) played host to the announcement of Windows Holographic and the HoloLens HMD. This exciting new concept allows users to see and interact with holograms. Its potential impacts are huge, but what does it mean for VR? READ MORE

For just over a month now USA-based virtual reality (VR) enthusiasts have been enjoying Samsung’s Gear VR, a smartphone-based head-mounted display (HMD) that marks one of the first major consumer releases for the technology. Of course, anyone that’s purchased the kit and the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 smartphone with which it runs will tell you that, despite it being on sale, it’s not quite ready for the mainstream. There are a number of issues holding Gear VR back from being a truly finalised product, not least of which is the absence of a premium store. READ MORE

“It is a good thing,” says Oculus Rift virtual reality (VR) head-mounted display creator Palmer Luckey. “It is a good thing to share knowledge that has been discovered so that other people can build on it and improve it. It’s a good thing.” VRFocus and surely the wider VR community is inclined to agree. READ MORE